LC

Definition

Abbreviation for Least Concern, a category in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species indicating that a taxon has been evaluated and does not qualify for the categories Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable, or Near Threatened. Species in this category are considered to have a sufficiently widespread and abundant population that they face no immediate risk of extinction. In entomology and arachnology, LC is commonly applied to well-documented, broadly distributed species with stable populations, though many invertebrates remain unevaluated due to data deficiencies.

Etymology

Initialism of Least Concern, established by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) for standardized threat assessment.

Example

The common garden spider Araneus diadematus is listed as LC across most of its Palearctic range, reflecting its abundance in diverse habitats from woodland edges to urban gardens.

Synonyms

• Least Concern

Related Terms

• IUCN Red List
• conservation status
• data deficient
• near threatened
• population trend
• species assessment

Usage Notes

LC does not imply a species is without threats; rather, current evidence indicates extinction risk meets none of the quantitative thresholds for higher threat categories. In practice, many insects and arachnids receive LC designations by default when they are widespread generalists, whereas narrow endemics often lack sufficient data for assessment. The category is absolute, not relative to regional abundance—a species may be common in one region and declining elsewhere yet still qualify as LC globally if overall population metrics are stable.